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Underappreciated Musician of Color #17: "T"

The Blasians are coming, the Blasians are coming, the Blasians are coming!!!

How about we start with this one right here?

"T", or Natasha "Tasha" Yoon Mi Rae Reid, is a Texas-born rapper and R & B singer. Her father's black and her mother Korean. She's fluent in both English and Korean. Born in 1981, she's been workin' since she was 16...and her music is the shit.

When I say she's underappreciated, I mean here in America, of course. Because in Korea, she's a multi-award winning artist, crowned the Queen of Soul and appointed an ambassador for DaMoonWha, the Korean Multicultural Youth Organization.

So it's pretty redundant at this point to add she's one of Korea's most influential rappers and female vocalists. And it's no bullshit; when you hear this woman spit live, you start to "pull a Rain", i.e. you find yourself clicking on vid after vid, simply unable to get enough.
I first fell for Miss Thang (actually Mrs. Thang; she's married to Drunken Tiger rapper Tiger JK) when I was introduced to her video "Black Happiness" where she recounts the struggle of growing up Blasian.

Are y'all beginning to understand why I'm perturbed by the shrouding of the Blasian bond? Need I even ask why we haven't heard more about this woman here in America? Why isn't she layin' down tracks with Lupe, Shinoda, Jay-Z, and the like? No, lemme guess: she did, but something "happened". She was going to have a tour, but something "happened". She was going to have an epic album release, but something "happened".

Comments

Girl, thank you! THANK YOU! I love her! I remember listening to her when she was part of a duo called Tashannie at the end of the '90s. I knew even then she was so talented. Btw, her husband's group Drunken Tiger is considered one of the old school Korean hip-hop groups. You should see her son. Omigosh, what a cutie!

I don't know if she's really the queen of Korean soul but she's definitely the queen of Korean hip hop, with her husband who is the king.

"Why isn't she layin' down tracks with Lupe, Shinoda, Jay-Z, and the like? No, lemme guess: she did, but something "happened". She was going to have a tour, but something "happened". She was going to have an epic album release, but something "happened"."

What do you mean by this? What happened exactly? I've been following Tasha since 2008 but I don't what you're talking about. I only know she got pregnant and is now a mother and that she had legal problems with her label a few years ago.

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